A Bird Blog with Kate St. John

Early this month at Magee Marsh, Ohio I heard that a woodcock was nesting in a grassy sward of the parking lot. I found the spot easily — it was surrounded by police tape — but I could not find the mother bird incubating her eggs. I looked for quite a while but she was too cryptic for me to see.

Her eggs hatched the following week and Charlie Hickey was there to capture a family portrait. I love how her chicks have cryptic down and tiny versions of her very long beak.

I wish I’d seen them, but then… I couldn’t even find their mother.

(photo by Charlie Hickey. Click on the photo to see more pictures of this woodcock family)

Is this cool or what? Right place right time for me about 20+ years ago, saving a family crossing the road in the middle of the morning….almost got hit…I was able to scoop up the 4 babies, and mama was not too happy, and I put them in the woods away from the road….was eye to eye with mama when I let them out my shirt….really, really something you won’t ever forget…(no camera back then…..now it goes with me everywhere!!!!)